Project Number:
05-13
Research Project:
Study of the Exposition Light-Rail’s Safety for Pedestrians
and Drivers
P.I. Name & Address:
Najmedin Meshkati
Department
of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University
of Southern California
Los
Angeles, CA 90089-2531
Tel: (213)
740-8765
Fax: (213)
744-1426
Email: meshkati@usc.edu
Mansour
Rahimi
Daniel
J. Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering
University
of Southern California
Los
Angeles, CA 90089-0193
Email: mrahimi@usc.edu
Jalal
Torabzadeh
Mechanical
and Aerospace Engineering Department
California
State University, Long Beach
1250
Bellflower Boulevard
Long
Beach, CA 90840
Email:
torabzad@csulb.edu
Project Objective:
The primary objective of this project is to identify and investigate
the major factors affecting Exposition light rail line’s safety for
pedestrian and drivers and to come up with specific recommendations
to improve its safety. We will try to answer these specific research
questions: Where and why do conflicts among light rail, drivers, and pedestrians
occur? What are the underlying causes of such accidents on the Expo Line?
And, how can such collisions be minimized or eliminated? We will also try
for our recommendations to be technically sound, economically cost-effective,
and applicable to different populations surrounding the Exposition area,
including elderly and children.
Task Descriptions:
1. Field Observation of the two main crossings – La
Brea and Crenshaw (3 months)
2. Mapping
special population density and crossing behaviors (3 months)
3. Analyzing
each crossing desing alternative for each population (4 months)
4. Developing
human factors design criteria for pedestrians and drivers for each design alternative
(2 months)
5. Developing
traffic flow models for each design alternative (2 months)
6. Validating
traffic flow models and analyzing potential conflicts (2 months)
7. Submit
the final report and begin dissemination (2 months)
Milestones, Dates:
February 1, 2005 – January 31, 2006
Total Budget:
$129,000
Student Involvement:
Two Students @ 25% effort, 12 months, USC
One
Student @ $10/hr, 945 hours, USC
One
Students @ $12/hr, 642 hours, CSULB
One Student @ $10/hr, 425 hours, CSULB
Relationship to Other Research Projects:
Related to 00-11; part of safety and security focus area; related to urban
mobility focus area
Technology Transfer Activities:
Project report posted on the website; results presented to local
agencies
Potential Benefits of the Project:
Improved safety for rail transit passengers
TRB Keywords:
Railroad safety, human factors, transit
Primary Subject:
Behavioral sciences and human performance
Goals:
Safety
Enabling Research:
Human performance and behavior
Modal Orientation:
Transit, pedestrian
